Foods to Avoid

Eating foods that cannot be easily removed from your braces can cause permanent discoloration and decay. Hard and sticky foods can damage brackets and wires or can loosen the cement that is holding your bands in place, which may make your treatment longer.

Hard Foods

May setback your treatment time because they can damage the wires or loosen your brackets or bands.

• Apples or Carrots (unless cooked or cut into small pieces)

• Corn on the Cob (unless cut off of the cob)

• Nuts

• Ribs/Wings (cut meat off)

• Popcorn

• Hard Pretzels

• Hard Candy

• Ice Cubes

• Bagels

• Tortilla Chips/Hard Tacos/Nachos

• Pizza Crusts

• Seeds

Sticky Foods

May setback treatment time because they can bend the wires or damage the cement bonds holding the bands in place.

• Caramels

• Taffy

• Starbursts

• Caramel Apples

• Toffee

• Sugar Daddies

• Licorice

• Sugar Babies

• Tootsie Rolls

• Gummy Bears

Gum

• Chew sugarless gum only

• No bubblegum, even if it is sugarless

Foods High in Sugar

May cause permanent staining and decay of your teeth. You should brush your teeth as soon as possible after eating any of these foods.